Sharing Childhood Memories

When I was in elementary school in upstate New York, they sold Black & White Cookies in the cafeteria for a quarter apiece. They called them "Half Moon Cookies", but they were the same thing. I adored those cookies.

In middle- and high-school, I was able to get my Black & White fix at a bakery in a neighboring Connecticut town. And, when I first set out on my own in South Florida, there was an amazing Jewish bakeshop that sold them.

Imagine my dismay upon moving to Virginia Beach and not being able to find a source for my cookie fix. What??? That was no good. A few short years later, we moved here to Indiana and, alas, I couldn't find them here either. My mother-in-law, who hails from Boston, and I would gripe about this together. We would recall the utter deliciousness of those bakery-fresh Black & Whites.

A couple weeks ago, I went to the Meijer Mealbox website to print off a couple of coupons and, lo and behold, the featured recipe was for... Black & White Cookies. Now, I have absolutely no idea why it never occurred to me to seek out a recipe and make them myself. I bake just about every other thing in our home. But, once I saw it, I knew I had to try it...



My mother-in-law agreed... they tasted just like the ones we both recall from our childhoods. Hubby and kiddos (who had never had the pleasure of eating them before) were hooked.

There's something wonderful about spending time baking with your children... and turning one of your own childhood memories into one of theirs...

To read some more tips and recipes, check out Kitchen Tip Tuesday, hosted at Tammy's Recipes.

********************************************

NGREDIENTS 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1 cup butter, softened 1 cup buttermilk 1 tsp. each baking soda and baking powder 2 eggs 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract 1 tsp. salt = Meijer One Stop Special = Coupon

PREPARATION INSTRUCTIONS 1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease baking sheets. Set aside. 2. Stir together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside. In large mixing bowl, beat sugar and butter with electric mixer on medium speed until combined. Add eggs and vanilla, beating until combined. Alternately add flour mixture and buttermilk, beating after each addition until just combined. 3. Drop by rounded tablespoons onto prepared baking sheet. Bake for 11 to 14 minutes or until edges are set and surface appears dry. (If cookies spread during baking, chill dough a few minutes.) Cool completely on wire rack 4. Prepare Two-Color Frosting: In small mixing bowl beat 1 pound sifted powdered sugar, 1/2 cup butter and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract with electric mixer on low speed until combined. Add enough milk to make spreading consistency. Remove half of frosting from bowl. Beat 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa into remaining frosting until combined. Add enough additional milk to make spreading consistency. 5. Spread half of each cookie with vanilla frosting and remaining half with chocolate frosting